SD Gundam Force GF
by Preventer Void
Summary: The dimensional barriers are weakening and the multiverse is about to collapse into pure chaos. Only the strongest warriors from Neotopia, Lacroa and Ark have a chance at saving their worlds and all others from the impending disaster.
1. Episode 1: Super Dimensional Guard, Go!

SD Gundam Force GF  
An SD Gundam Force fanfiction by Preventer Void  
Episode 1: Super Dimensional Guard, Go!

AUTHOR'S NOTES: Well, I imagine some of you out there are looking at this and saying things like "What the heck is this!" and "Where's Codename Lightning, you lazy bastard!" (Gimme a minute guys, I'm only human...)

Anyway, here's the story. In case you didn't know, I'm a regular at GameFAQ's Gundam board. A few months ago, a trend arose of people creating stories and asking the others on the board to create characters to occupy that story's world. In a sense, it's a mix of a fanfic and a role-play. Anyway, yours truly wanted to get in on the action as well, but the really good ideas (Super Robot Wars and G-Generation) had already been taken. A couple of days later, I was looking up information on SD Gundam Force's second season, and everything came together.

Two big notes here: This story is in no way connected to the plot of the SD Gundam Force anime; consider it an AU. Also, the real SD Gundam Force uses characters who are based off of Mobile Suits from Gundam series that have aired in America (namely 0079, Char's Counterattack, G-Gundam, Wing and Endless Waltz). Since I was dealing with people who are much better versed in the realm of Gundam, I chose to open sign-ups to any and all official series. This means that you will eventually see characters representing every Gundam anime, as well as several of the official manga and video game sidestories. Without any further ado, enjoy!

As for rating, I'd probably put this at T just for safety. There isn't really much objectionable other than a couple of mild swear words once in a while, but better safe than sorry, right?

* * *

In the shadowy regions of the dimensional nexus, there stood a castle. Its stone construction was the dark crimson of dried blood, and its parapets and keeps were topped with wicked spikes. The tower of the central keep had a single, circular window in the front which, when lit, gave the entire building the image of a malevolent cyclops. The lightning that flashed through the unstable region only added to the castle's evil countenance. 

Inside the main keep, the castle's lord waited for his minions to gather. He had been marshaling his forces and sending out decoy teams to gauge their chosen realm's defenses. Now, he felt, the time was ripe. They had their army at the ready. Their allies were prepared in their own dimensions. And now all he had to do was give the word, and the attack would begin.

The doors to the audience chamber swung open slowly as a pair of Soldier Dogas entered the room, a third with bright blue armor standing in the hallway. With a commanding but still feminine voice, the blue Doga spoke. "My lord, they have arrived."

With a slow nod of his massive head, the general indicated that his minions should enter. The first into the room was Lady Qubeley, flanked by her twin bodyguards, Gazu-E and Gazu-W. He took a minute to admire her figure before reminding himself that her bodyguards took an attitude with anyone they thought threatened their charge, physically or otherwise. He wished they would display that same fire on the battlefield; as it was, they were pretty pathetic bodyguards.

Immediately following Qubeley came her subordinates, Captain Zaku, Lieutenant Jarja, Lt. Commander Gelga, and Lieutenant Tetra. They stood a respectful distance behind their leader as she bowed respectfully. "I've been awaiting your summons with baited breath, General. I do hope it's good news."

The General nodded again, giving off the impression that any motion was painful for his large frame. "I shall, but let us wait for Captain Bawoo and his people first."

Qubeley quickly looked over her shoulder, a motion that would have been like a human woman tossing her hair contemptuously. "He's here. He just insisted upon 'ladies first'. For all his negative qualities, I can at least say he's courteous."

As if on cue, Captain Bawoo came striding into the room a second later, flanked by his minions Commander Dreissen, Commander Physalis, Lieutenant Jagd, and Blaster Zssa. Briefly regarding Qubeley and her entourage with a cold glance, he bowed to the General. "It's a pleasure as always, sir. Now, if you'll pardon my impatience..."

"I understand," the General interrupted. "It has been a good while since our last conversation, and in that time our dimension has grown ever more unstable. Fortunately, things may be looking up for we of the Dark Axis."

"Do you mean...?" began Lt. Commander Jarja.

The General nodded yet again. "It seems as if our forces are at sufficient strength to take that new dimension. In fact, considering we're only going up against a world full of organics, we're probably over-armed."

Commander Physalis sneered. "Disgusting creatures, all of them. There's no such thing as excessive force when it comes to them."

"As I was saying," their leader continued as his monoeye glanced over the assembly, "I believe that at our current strength, we should be able to overcome them. The only question is, who among you is willing to lead our initial foray into this new dimension?"

Blaster Zssa rose to her feet and hefted her gunspear over her shoulder. "Please, General, send me. I'll deal with these organic-loving losers with no trouble at all."

"Very well," the General said. "Prepare the Soldier Dogas and load up the Musaka and two Endras. Our conquest of Neotopia begins today..."

* * *

High in the skies of Neotopia hovered a military facility of incredible sophistication. To the casual observer, it would have looked like nothing more than a gigantic, metal hand - assuming they could see through the heavy cloud cover that perpetually surrounded the base. Even if a civilian could get inside, he would have a hard time comprehending everything around him. Although Neotopia was a fairly advanced world, the lion's share of its technology was concentrated in defense. Without the common folks realizing it, their leaders were secretly aiding in the funding of one of the most advanced defensive forces in this or most other galaxies. 

That was exactly how they wanted it.

The less the general populace knew, the better. If a fight broke out in a remote region, people could go on with their everyday lives without missing a beat. But if a battle happened in the middle of a populous region, there would be questions. Who attacked us? Why did they attack us? When will they come back? Who fought them off? Why were we never told about this? Those questions were too heady to answer, and would leave too many people unhappy and worried. So the public remained blissfully unaware of the Super Dimensional Guard's existence, and that was fine by its leader.

Today, however, General Haro knew something was wrong. He could just feel it in his bones when he woke up this morning. Now, as he sat in his chair on the bridge of Blanc Base, the feeling was that much stronger. He almost didn't want to ask the crew to do a random search - that might worry them. But then he told himself that it was better to be cautious than careless.

Turning to the operator, he spoke. "Julie, perform a routine sweep of the area within a five hundred mile radius of Neotopia City. I have a bad feeling that our mystery enemy is going to try something."

Julie looked over her shoulder at the Commander. It took some getting used to a commanding officer with a spherical head, but if anything, she was flexible. "You really think they're going to try something, sir?"

"I'd bet my life that today's the day."

With that reassurance, Julie started the sweep. After about five minutes, her console began beeping. "It looks like you may be right, sir. There's a sign of dimensional weakness about three hundred miles east of the city."

Haro rose from his chair. "Is anything coming through?"

The silence in the bridge was unbearable. Finally, Julie spoke. "Yes, there's a ship. It has similar markings to the scouts we've encountered in the past."

"I see," the commander said as he settled back into his chair. He had been right; the enemy had chosen today to attack. Now, there was only one thing for it. "Call in the Gundam Force. I want all available members here A.S.A.P. We have a job to do, so we're going to do it right."

By the tone of his voice, you would never know that General Haro was actually scared senseless.

* * *

"Irasshai masu, Sil-chan, V-kun!" 

Lieutenant Silhouette of the SDG nodded to the hostess as she and Ensign V entered the restaurant and headed back to the kitchen. By now, the SDG's members were known to be excellent customers, and head chef Michiba was happy to serve them. After a minute, Michiba came out of the kitchen, wiping his hands on a napkin.

"It's good to see you again. Your order is ready, but are you sure you'll be able to carry it?"

"Don't worry," Sil said, "we have a friend with us, but he ran off to get a new CD. We'll foist some of them off on him when he gets here."

The chef chuckled. "You guys sure love rice balls. Why is that, anyway?"

After thinking for a second, V shrugged. "I dunno, we just do. I mean, why does anyone like eating anything?"

"You have a point there," Michiba said contemplatively. "Well, I'll go get your rice balls," he added as he went back into the kitchen.

Shortly afterwards, the two Gundams left the restaurant with three large bags full of rice balls. Sil looked around the streets, trying to spot X. "Hmm, he's late. I hope nothing's wrong."

"You know how how he gets over Nami Tamaki," V said dismissively. "Give him a little time."

Almost as soon as the words were spoken, the two of them saw the crowd give way as Ensign Gundam X ran up to them, CD clutched tightly in hand and panting heavily. Sil put her free hand on her hip before asking in a sarcastic tone, "Is it THAT good of an album, X?"

The young Gundam held up a hand to stem the flow of jokes as he caught his breath, then coughed before replying. "Guys...HQ called...it's an emergency. We're on call."

* * *

As he sat in front of his computer, General Haro tried to hide his unease. Normally, for a man wearing a large spherical headmask, this would be as easy as falling off a log. However, given what he thought of his COs, he wouldn't have been surprised if they could smell fear. When the clock struck 2 PM, the screen lit up with the video conference window. 

"Well, General," said the Secretary of Defense said as he steepled his fingers in front of his face. "It looks like the day you've been preparing for so long is finally here."

Haro nodded. "Indeed it is, Mister Hymem. Honestly, I'd prefer that it weren't happening at all..."

Hymem's aide, Bosque Ohm, snorted derisively. "What's the matter, afraid your little toy robots aren't up to the job?"

"That's enough, Bosque," Jamitov interrupted. "It's obvious that the General would rather there was no threat, and therefore no need to have such a force."

"Right as usual, sir," Haro replied. He despised Ohm; the big man, who was built like a bull, at times seemed to be about as intelligent as one. He also had a knack for being incredibly stubborn and irritating.

"Nobody wants war," the Secretary continued, "But against an enemy who will not be negotiated with, you must fight. I approve of the deployment of the SDG. Deal with these monsters as you see fit."

Behind the mask, Haro breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, sir. We'll deploy immediately to prevent them from damaging the city."

The monitor darkened. Rising from his chair, General Haro left his office and headed for the hangar. It was time to see if they were really ready...

* * *

High over the rolling plains outside of Neotopia City, the sleek crimson form of the Dark Axis battleship Musaka hovered over the ground at a height of one thousand feet. Inside the launch bay, a large division of Soldier Dogas stood at attention as their commander, Blaster Zssa, started pacing back in front in forth of the open bay doors, which showed a view of the city proper. 

"Alright, boys," she said as she gestured dramatically towards the peaceful-looking buildings of the city. "The big boss says our job is to take down those ruddy organics, so that's what we're gonna do! Everybody lock and load, 'cause it's time to BLOW THE HELL OUTTA EVERYTHING!"

The Dogas looked at each other sideways, trying to keep from showing their confusion. Deciding that it was better to keep from annoying their trigger-happy commander, they all thrust their machineguns into the air and yelled out in half-hearted assent. Thankfully, Zssa didn't notice the lateness of the response; she was too busy looking at the large buildings and imagining how pretty it would be when they all blew up and fell over. With an odd-sounding giggle, she walked to the edge and tried to get a better view when...

"Commander!"

The surprise almost made Zssa stumble out of the ship head-first. A couple of Dogas ran up and grabbed her arms to pull her back inside. "Dammit, Eyezack! You're trying to kill me, aren't you!"

Down on the surface, the blue Zako lookalike was running towards the ships as fast as his chubby head would allow. He activated his radio. "Commander! There's a warship approaching from the city, and fast!"

"What!" Zssa muttered sulfurous curses under her breath as she scanned the skies. "I don't see it...where is..."

Before she completed her sentence, bursts of glowing blue beam blasts came screaming by the Musaka's fuselage from the clouds above. The white masses parted, revealing a white and blue battleship, its beam cannons trained on the Musaka. The communications system blared to life. "Commander, the ship is hailing us."

With a faint crackle of static, a commanding male voice came over the communications system. "I am Captain Nu Gundam of the SDG. I have been authorized to use weapons in defense of Neotopia and its populace. Surrender immediately."

Zssa pumped her fist angrily at the white ship. "I'm not running without a fight, buster! All units, ATTACK!"

* * *

On the flight deck of the Pegasus, Captain Nu sighed. "It just had to be the hard way, didn't it?" 

Standing to the Captain's side, Gunsaber Zeta shrugged. "Well, we were told not to expect negotiations to work. After all, that's why they need us."

"I see your point," Nu said as he rubbed the back of his head. "Alright then, I guess we'll have to see if we're all really ready. Saber, I want you to lead the Gun Zeta team. Panzer, Jetter, Blader, V, X, Alise, you all stick to flight and harass their warships. The rest of us will head to the ground and deal with their forces. And remember, everyone comes back alive, you hear me?"

"Yessir!" came the chorus from the Gundam Force.

"Alright then." Stepping up, Nu stomped his feet into the catapult.

The doors opened.

The green light came on.

"Captain Nu, launching!"

With a flare of bright blue thrusters, Nu flew through the sky, headed straight towards the Musaka. Unfortunately, he lacked the ability to fly, but that didn't stop him from getting in a couple of shots with his beam rifle as he passed by, scoring a hit on one of the beam cannon turrets. The anti-air guns fires as he flew by, but his maneuvering thrusters allowed him to evade it easily. As he neared the ground, he heard several resounding thuds as the rest of his team landed behind him. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Silhouette, Javelin, Mudrock, Guntrigger, and the Z2 team rising to their feet and drawing their main weapons. Several yards in front of them, Zssa and her Doga forces landed in the same fashion. Nu leveled his beam rifle at Zssa and looked her eye-to-eye. "You only get one more warning. Surrender immediately."

"How's about THIS FOR AN ANSWER!" Zssa cried as she began blazing away at Nu with her gunspear and beam cannons while shooting a salvo of missiles. Thrusting to the side, he used his vulcans to shoot down the missiles and started firing his beam rifle. Zssa charged him head-on, still firing her beam cannons and heating up the bayonet on her gunspear...

* * *

The Gundam Force, outnumbered by the Soldier Dogas, looked to each other. Silhouette, as the ranking officer, nodded to the others. "Javelin, you're with me. Everyone else give us some cover fire. Go!" Drawing her beam saber left-handed, she fired at one of the leading Soldier Dogas as she rushed forward. At her side, Javelin did the same. A second later, a hail of beam blasts, missiles and cannon shells darted past them and headed for the Dogas. 

The squad leader blinked in stunned surprise at the incoming attack. Instantly, all his training melted away and he panicked, blindly spraying his beam machinegun in an attempt to knock down some of the missiles. Unfortunately for him, he didn't think to move while doing so, and most of the Dogas in his team followed suit. In a burst of bright red fire, they were sent headlong, landing on their heads, backsides, or in any number of uncomfortable positions.

Off to the side, Eyezack watched in horror. What was supposed to be an easy conquest was rapidly souring. Realizing that he might actually have to help out, he looked around for a weapon. Of to his side lay a beam tomahawk, dropped by one of the unfortunate Dogas. Creeping on his hands and knees, he tried to sneak over as quietly as possible so as not to attract the Gundams' attention. Almost there, his hand reached out...

...And a heavy blue-gray foot stomped down on top of the tomahawk's handle. Looking up slowly, Eyezack found the massive form of a Gundam looking down at him.

"You wouldn't be thinking of doing anything rash...would you?"

Eyezack shook his head pitifully.

"Good." One of the Gundam's beefy fists came down on the back of the smaller mecha's head, knocking him out cold.

Looking over from her clash, Sil nodded. "I didn't see you there, Striker."

Gunstriker nodded as he pulled out his blaster beam rifle. "I figured they had a recon man, so I took it upon myself to investigate. So, is anyone left, or did you kids spoil my fun?"

* * *

Nu and Zssa clashed as they locked sabers and glared each other down. 

"You know you can't win. Just back down and maybe we can talk about this."

"Talk about THIS, PUNK!"

While still in close range, Zssa fired her beam cannons into Captain's face, making a gigantic explosion as she jumped back, laughing wildly. "So much for that guy!"

"Don't be too confident..."

The smoke cleared, first leaving an odd triangular shape hanging in mid-air, then totally faded away. To Zssa's complete stupefaction, Nu stood there as clean as if he had just stepped out of the shower. Hovering in front of him were three of those radiator fins - they WERE radiator fins, right? - making a plane of force that shimmered in the hazy light. As the fins reattached themselves to his back, Nu raised his beam saber again. "Still want to go?"

Zssa looked around wildly. "My troops! Where are my troops!"

"Taken care of," Gunstriker said curtly as he and the rest of the ground-based team came up to support Captain.

"So are the weapons on your ships," added Zeta as he and the flying team hovered nearby.

"Um...umm..."

Nu shook his head. "I told you to surrender..."

"Ku...DAMN YOU! DAMN YOU ALL! RETREAT!"

With a wordless cry of rage, Zssa turned and quickly boosted back towards the Musaka, followed by the Soldier Dogas, two of which had to carry Eyezack. As the ships turned to run, Gunjetter pointed his buster rifles at them.

"Let them go," Nu said as he reached out and pushed the twin weapons down.

"But sir!" the transforming Gundam protested, "if we let them run..."

"...I'm hoping that they got the message this time," Nu interrupted. "I would prefer not to kill anyone, or to litter the landscape."

Lieutenant S put her hands on her hips and watched the ships as they jumped through the dimensional gate. "So what do we do if they come back?"

"What else," Ensign V said with a shrug. "We'll have to be ready for them."

* * *

"Hah! The mighty warrior returns, her tail between her legs!" 

Zssa growled as she pointed her gunspear at Lieutenant Tetra. "You shut up!"

"Enough!" Commander Zaku said as he stood between the two, holding them at arm's length. "We can't blame Zssa for what happened today. We were anticipating little resistance from the organics...the idea that they had an armed force of beings like ourselves never even entered into it."

The General nodded. "Indeed. That was an unfortunate oversight on my part. I should have had our scouts look harder."

"Don't blame yourself, sir." This came from Qubeley. "They've obviously been keeping this group's existence as secret as they could. Instead of pointing fingers and screaming at each other, we need to learn from our mistakes and work harder next time."

"Well said, Lady. And I assure you all," he said as his monoeye glowed a menacing green, "there WILL be a next time..."

* * *

Zako...Zako...Zako... 

It's the Zako Zako Hour!

Zako 1: Ladies and gentle-bots, welcome to the Zako Zako Hour! You may be asking yourselves what we're doing here...

Zako 2: You see, since the Dark Axis replaced us with those new (mocking voice) Soldier Dogas...

Zako 3: We've been out of a job! So now, we're here to inform and entertain you, the readers!

Zako 2: So, what do we talk about first?

Zako 1: How about...this guy?

(The screen lights up with images of Captain Nu in battle.)

Zako 1: This is the leader of the Gundam Force, Captain Nu Gundam. Model number RX-93, his weapons include a large beam saber, vulcans, a beam rifle, and a new hyper bazooka.

Zako 3: Wait a second! What about those?

(The screen shows Captain blocking Zssa's shot with the "fins".)

Zako 2: I know! Those are a new type of weapon called "fin funnels", which are an improvement of the funnels that some people like Lady Q use.

Zako 3: How are they better than Lady Q's?

Zako 2: In addition to being ranged attack weapons, they can generate a beam barrier, like Blaster Zssa found out the hard way!

Zako 3: So why are they all on one side of his body? It makes him look strange.

Zako 1: According to our sources, Captain Nu's development was interrupted by our attack. Because of that, he had to rush into battle in an imcomplete state.

Zako 3: So where did this guy come from?

(The screen changes to show an SDGF-styled Alex.)

Zako 1: Apparently, Captain began his life as a lieutanant of the Gundam Force.

(The screen changes to show the silhouette of another Gundam.)

Zako 1: In fact, rumor has it that his mentor was the original captain of the Gundam Force!

Zako 2: I bet he was an incredible fighter!

Zako 3: Wow, no wonder Zssa got her butt kicked so easily!

Zssa: (off-screen) WHAT WAS THAT!

(She comes dashing across the stage, all weapons blazing and chasing the Zakos off.)

Zako 1: (hiding near the "camera") Well, I guess that's all this for this time but everyone, remember...

For the future of the Dark Axis, ZAKO SOLDIERS, FIGHT!

(Fade to black)

Zssa: (still firing) COME BACK HERE!

Zakos: Zako!


	2. Episode 2: Divide and Conquer!

SD Gundam Force GF  
An SD Gundam Force fanfiction by Preventer Void  
Episode 2: Divide and Conquer!

* * *

Lightning clashed outside the window of the audience chamber as the General marshaled his thoughts. A large computer display in front of him showed the battle data taken from the previous battle, with particular analyses on as much information as they could gather about the Gundam Force members. As he looked at Captain Nu outshooting and outfighting Zssa, the General grunted unhappily. He knew that it was his fault they had to contend with these new enemies, despite the reassurances his subordinates tried to pay him. Knowing that it was his fault, he realized that it was on his head to figure out how to defeat them...

And just like that, the idea came to him. He felt like laughing at himself for missing something so obvious and so simple. However, if it worked, these Gundams would be no more...

"Guards!" the General yelled to the Soldier Dogas standing guard outside his chambers. When they opened the door and saluted, he continued. "Summon the troops. I believe it's time to strike at Neotopia once more..."

* * *

As the assembly looked up at the General, several screens flashed into view, all of them showing clips from the previous fight, with special attention being paid to the members of the Gundam Force. Blaster Zssa looked at the screen showing Nu and muttered under her breath.

"In case you're wondering why I've called you all here..." the General began.

"If it's to entertain us, you've succeeded," interrupted Tetra. Watching the fight, she laughed as the video showed Zssa running away.

Qubeley cleared her throat loudly. "That's more than enough, Lieutenant. The General has something important to tell us, so save the petty squabbling for later."

The General nodded. "Thank you. As I was saying, I believe I have come up with a plan that will allow us to defeat the SDG. In fact, the simplicity of this plan made me wonder if I needed to go back to the academy."

Bawoo gestured politely. "And the plan, sir?"

"Divide and conquer."

As he spoke these words, a display appeared in front of him, showing an overhead view of Neotopia City. Fourteen circles appeared on the display, each marked with the Dark Axis insignia. "Though the enemy has many powerful Gundams, it seems as though they don't have any foot soldiers like our Dogas. Therefore, if we can split their focus, odds are we can overwhelm them with superior numbers."

Dreissen motioned for attention. "An excellent plan, sir, but you're counting on fourteen independent attack squads, and we only have eleven commanders. Where are the other three?"

"Here we are."

The commanders turned around as two figures stepped into the room. The General managed a wave of introduction. "Ladies, gentlemen, these are Diver Kapool, Sniper Zowm, and Shot Gallus, three of the top students from the training academy. If they succeed against the SDG today, they will receive full promotions and join your ranks."

Captain Zaku extended his hand. "Well met, but are you sure you want to jump from the textbook to the field?"

"For our country, we will do anything," Gallus said as he shook the offered hand.

"I'm glad to hear it. Everyone get ready. We'll forestall the use of battleships today, if only because they make big targets. Now, go forth and fight for our future."

"Yessir!"

* * *

"Why do I always have to do the hard work?"

Ensign Javelin sighed at his brother's oft-repeated complaint. "Because you signed up for the SDG but don't want to go through combat training. Seriously, James, if you hate menial labor so much and you don't want to fight, why'd you sign up for the Gundam Force?"

With a shrug, Jamesgun turned and went off on his way, muttering all the way. Shaking his head, Javelin started off down the hallway and bumped into Gunblader.

"Heya Javelin, what's bugging you?" the pseudo-Gundam asked.

"What else? It's my brother. You know, I really love the guy, but there are times when I wonder how two so completely different people could be brothers."

ReGZ shrugged. "Nobody gets to control how or when they're born. At the very least, I can say I envy you because I'm an only child. You're lucky to have a brother, even if you don't see eye to eye on everything."

"I guess..."

At that moment, the alarm went off, interrupting their conversation. With a nod to each other, the two warriors ran to the briefing room.

* * *

Captain Nu was the first to arrive; he had been in the area anyway. Like clockwork, the other members of the Gundam Force started streaming into the room one after the other and started taking their seats. Given the wildly varying dimensions of their bodies, they each had a personalized chair. X had commented that it reminded him of a comic book he read once, but that had only earned him a few good-natured razzes from the others.

General Haro came in after they were all seated. "Thank you all for such a prompt response. It seems that the enemy forces have chosen to attack once more. Their main force is coming at the west side of the city, but it looks like they're coming on foot, allowing them to avoid the damage we gave them last time."

Mudrock jumped to his feet. "So what are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"I don't know," said Leopard as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "This doesn't seem right. I mean, we kicked their butts from here to next week during their last fight. Their leader would have to be a military school drop-out to suggest the exact same plan of attack a second time."

"So what's the issue?" asked Airmaster impatiently. "Their leader's a moron, let's go beat them up again."

As it to answer Aimaster's question, another localized dimensional flux appeared on the east side of the city, followed by one to the northwest, one to the south...in a matter of minutes, there were fourteen confirmed warps.

Leopard snapped his fingers. "So much for that theory."

Looking at the General, Nu shook his head. "Even if it's a trick, we have no choice. If any one of those groups gets into the city, there'll be Hell to pay."

Haro sighed. "I wish you were wrong, Captain. As it is, we have no choice. Everyone pick a destination and launch. We have no time to lose."

* * *

Captain Nu jumped off his jet sled as he approached the place where the northern enemy forces were said to be. Remaining wary, he scanned the surrounding area. Just then, he became aware of an almost imperceptible whine all around him. It sounded like...

Nu jumped into the air, thrusters boosting him upwards, as a shower of beam shots came from all directions at the space he once occupied. Tracing one of the shots back to its source, he showered a nearby bush with a burst of fire from his vulcans, hoping to flush out the enemy. However, as he landed the bush remained silent. Another beam erupted out of it, aimed straight at him. He dodged to the side, only to have another beam strike him in the back. He wheeled around in time to see a conical white object trying to dart away. With a spray of vulcans, he shot it out of the air, then dodged forwards as he saw a beam come at him from the side.

"Very well done...Captain Nu, was it? You're the first to avoid my funnels."

He looked up as an unfamiliar enemy approached, flanked by two almost identical bodyguards and followed by several Soldier Dogas. "And you are?"

A beam saber slid into her right hand and activated. "My name is Lady Qubeley of the Dark Axis. Of course, by the time I get done with you, you won't be in any condition to tell anyone."

Gaza-W jumped in front of his charge. "My lady, let us take care of him. We..."

"No. I'll fight this one myself."

Before they could raise any more protests, she launched herself at Nu.

* * *

At the southwest side of the city, the Z2 Gunner team landed at the edge of Lake Dublin and looked around in confusion. The leader activated his radio. "Z2 Gunner 1 here...there don't seem to be any enemies around..."

Before he could finish, the calm waters of the lake burst as Kapool and several Aqua Dogas leapt to the surface, catching the team off-guard. The Dark Axis team started shooting missiles at the Z2 Gunners, most of which were absorbed by their armor.

"If you guys want to get us, you'll have to play by our rules!" cried Kapool as he jumped back into the water, followed by his subordinates.

Z2 Unit 3 grunted unhappily. "Yeah, right! Take this!" Raising his heavy hyper mega cannon, he fired a shot into the water - only to watch as most of the beam was dissipated by it.

The Z2 Gunners looked at each other. Unit 2 shrugged. "I guess we have to..."

* * *

"Just stay out of my way, you cannon fodder!"

Silhouette turned around as she heard the shout. Smirking, she leveled her beam rifle at the forest from which the voice had come and fired it, as well as the beam spraygun mounted on her arm. Several angry cries came from the trees, followed by several loud thuds. After a second, a bright crimson streak burst out of the foliage, beam machinegun blazing away. Sil raised her left arm and activated her beam shield, blocking the shots.

"Damn Dogas!" yelled Tetra as she landed. "If you can't do anything properly, then just go back home!"

Sil laughed. "You'd be better off treating your subordinates with more respect. I doubt you can beat me on your own."

"We'll just see about that!"

Screaming wordlessly, Tetra drew her beam saber and charged.

* * *

The Zeta Gunners swirled and looped through the air, dodging beam blasts and missiles fired by the Soldier Dogas on their jet sleds. Sniper Zowm darted between their ranks, taking occasional potshots with his hyper knuckle buster.

"How are we supposed to deal with these guys!" Gun Zeta Two asked, half-rhetorically.

"Like this," responded his team leader. He hefted his beam smartgun and fired a full-power blast, knocking several Dogas out of the fight and destroying their sleds.

Zowm laughed almost maniacally. "Nice, but you two are no match for me!"

"Just keep telling yourself that!" Gun Zeta One cried as he pointed his hip beam cannons at the flying enemy and fired.

* * *

Back at Blanc Base, General Haro looked over the battle data and frowned. The Gundam Force was outnumbered and outgunned. He turned to Julie. "What are the percentages of activation for the Soul Drives?"

The operator checked the battle data on her computer. "Captain's is at .00001, and he's the highest out of them. Pardon me for stating the obvious, but this does NOT look good."

"Don't worry," Haro said as he folded his hands. "Percentages don't matter when you have the courage that those young people do."

* * *

Bright bursts of lightning and sparks flew as Double-Zeta locked sabers with Physalis. The Dark Axis commander laughed as he pushed the saber forward. "Stupid kid...you can't hope to defeat me! Give up now and I may just make your end painless!"

Double-Zeta grunted as he tried to push back. "You know...you...are REALLY getting on my nerves!"

With a sudden burst of power, Physalis was blown back, landing hard on his back. Rising to his feet, he drew his second saber. "I'll show you, brat!" Then he saw that Double-Zeta's eyes were burning with a great internal power.

"I'd say it's my turn to show you something!" Energy that seemingly appeared in thin-air began gathering in Double-Zeta's forehead crest, coalescing into a single point of light focused in the center of his forehead.

Physalis threw one of his sabers aside and pulled out his giant bazooka. "You don't scare me!" He fired a bazooka shot, which shot threw the air straight for Double-Zeta's face.

"Take this! HI-MEGA CANNON!"

The gathered energy exploded outwards into a gigantic wave of golden light that was headed right for Physalis. Too late, he grabbed for his discarded shield and put it in front of himself. The energy hit with the force of a tidal wave, pushing him backwards several hundred yards, tearing into the shield until it had completely melted away.

* * *

"Kid, you have no idea what you're in for!"

Bawoo pointed his shield and fired, unleashing a stream of beam blasts at Zeta. The golden energy struck home, making a gigantic cloud of dust and smoke. Smirking, he relaxed...

...Until the cloud suddenly burst outwards in a torrent of glowing purple-pink power, all concentrated on Zeta's body.

"You...how did you..."

Zeta glared at the enemy captain. "I think you've had enough."

He reached over to his hip and drew out a beam saber. The field momentarily dimmed as the power flowed from all around his body into his right hand, forming around the beam saber.

Bawoo's monoeye widened. "You're kidding!"

Zeta swung his saber as the power shot forth, making a mile-long blade that crashed down right on Captain Bawoo's head...

* * *

Captain Nu dashed across the ground, dodging beam blasts and retaliating with his own beam rifle shots. "You should surrender. The Zeta Gunners have defeated your air force, the Z2 Gunners have beaten your naval units - with a little trouble, but beaten all the same, and..."

Behind Captain, an enormous wave of bright blue energy appeared, shooting away from the city. Without missing a beat, he continued. "...And it looks like Ensign X has taken care of whoever he was fighting."

Qubeley growled angrily. "Your problem is that you need to stop sermonizing and fight like a man!" Her funnels began firing more intensely, trying to anticipate his movements.

Captain backflipped away from Qubeley, landing in a kneeling position. "Trust me, I'm just warming up."

The six fins on his back lifted off, forming into U-shapes, and raced into the thick of battle. They began firing almost in unison, taking out most of Qubeley's own funnels and striking her in the right shoulder, making her drop her saber and screech to a halt. They stared at each other for a long time before either of them said anything.

"Your allies are defeated. I'd advise you to give and never come back here."

Gazu-E ran up and took Qubeley's shoulder as his brother picked up her saber. Qubeley cursed under her breath. "Until I destroy each and every one of your people for what they've done, I will never give up. We will be back."

A portal, resembling a horizontal pool of turbulent water, opened into existence behind her. After she and the wounded Dogas had retreated through it, it winked out of existence. Captain lowered his beam rifle as the fin funnels reattached themselves to his back. He activated his radio. "Nice job, everyone. Let's head home."

* * *

The General let out an angry growl as he watched the footage of the Gundams' Soul Drive-powered attacks. He had hoped that superior numbers and tactics would allow his forces to beat the power of the SDG. Unfortunately, there had been one thing he hadn't planned on, and right now he was watching the results as they happened in great detail. While the commanders recovered from their injuries, the plans would have to go on hold. That was just one of the many things that were doing little to improve his mood at this point.

"If I could go and fight them myself, I would...but for now, I will have to wait..."

* * *

Zako...Zako...Zako...

It's the Zako Zako Hour!

Zako 1: Ladies and gentle-bots, welcome to the Zako Zako Hour!

Zako 2: Today, our subject is...

Zakos: (together) "What the Heck is a Soul Drive, Anyway?"

Zako 3: Zako! I have a question!

(The screen shows Double-Zeta, his eyes aflame.)

Zako 3: Why's it look like that Gundam's face is on fire?

Zako 1: That's one of the visual signs that a Soul Drive is active and providing power!

Zako 2: Oooh! I thought it was an advertisement for eye drops...

Zako 1: (furious) You idiot! Why would we advertise eye-drops in the middle of an episode!

Zako 3: I dunno, we do sell a lot of stuff...

Zako 1: ANYWAY!

Zako 2: Oh, right!

(The screen shows a montage of the SDG members using their super attacks.)

Zako 2: How the heck did they do that?

Zako 1: While the Soul Drive is active, it gives you an incredible power boost that makes you almost unstoppable!

Zako 3: Oooh! I thought they had to go to the bathroom and were just trying to get the battle over with so they could...

Zako 1: (furious) You idiot! Why do I have to deal with such morons!

(His anger makes him catch fire...and his armor falls off.)

Zako 3: (shielding his eye) Um...I think that's all the time we have for today.

Zako 1: Really, I could have sworn there was more time than that...

For the future of the Dark Axis, ZAKO SOLDIERS, FIGHT!

(Fade to black)

Zako 1: Zako! Is there a draft in here, or is it just me?


	3. Episode 3: Clashing Swords Arrival of

SD Gundam Force GF  
An SD Gundam Force fanfiction by Preventer Void  
Episode 3: Clashing Swords - Arrival of the Knight Gundams!

* * *

The wind howled menacingly as the two armies faced each other across the plain. The sky was dark with unfallen rain, as if it were mirroring the tension between the two nations. On both sides, the commanders raised their swords, then pointed them down with a slashing motion. As the two infantries charged each other, the archers let loose with their arrows and the mages released their spells, summoning forth great fireballs and bolts of lightning upon each other. The sound of the two armies clashing was like a clap of thunder. Metal met metal, sparks flew, and shouts filled the air. 

Across the field, the two commanders stared each other down. One drew his sword out of a shield-mounted scabbard. The other waved his hand, summoning a massive two-handed sword, buckler and a blue cape into being. Ignoring everything else, they charged straight towards each other. A soldier jumped up to attack one of them, only to be swatted aside easily. Arrows streamed towards the other, but he blocked them with his wide-bladed weapon. Finally, they met in the center of the battlefield and swung their swords at each other.

And with a deafening roar and a burst of surging energy, the world around them melted away.

* * *

"We are not pleased, General." 

Haro sighed within his mask. Somehow, he didn't think that anything he did would satisfy the strict Secretary of Defense. Now, he would have to wait to learn what transgression he had made.

"We were hoping that knowledge of the Gundam Force's existence would remain privileged information," Hymem continued. "Unfortunately, in your latest battle..."

"But sir," Haro interrupted, "if the Gundam Force members hadn't used their Soul Drive abilities, they probably would have been destroyed, and then there would have been nothing standing between them and Neotopia City."

"Regardless, we feel you could have handled the situation with more...discression. We don't need the general populace learning about what we're doing here. I must warn you, if anything else like this happens, there WILL be repercussions."

* * *

Ensign X shook his head as he looked out the wide windows and into the bright blue sky. "I don't get it. We were just doing our job, so why'd they reprimand the General?" 

Alise put her hand to the window as a bird flew by. "They want to keep our existence as much a secret as possible. That's why they tell us not to carry weapons outside unless there's a threat announced. That way, they can just pass us off as extremely fancy Mobile Citizens."

"That's not the only reason," Ensign V remarked as he entered the room. "I've never trusted the Secretary or his assistant. It's just...it seems like they have other things in mind than the general welfare of Neotopia. As for the Captain..."

"What about him?" asked X and Alise in the same instant.

V looked around furtively, as if checking for spies, before answering. "The story I've heard is that Captain Nu hasn't trusted the Secretary since the experimental dimensional travel tests over ten years ago."

X interrupted. "You mean the tests that lead to Captain F91's disappearance?"

"The very same," V replied with a nod. "From what I hear, Captain Nu thinks that they gave up too readily, as if they had a chance at saving him but just didn't bother doing anything for some reason."

The clouds rolled by as the three Gundams contemplated in silence.

* * *

A black cloud opened up above Neotopia City, looking as if a miniature thunderstorm had suddenly sprung into being. Although it discharged a couple of bolts of lightning, no rain fell from the cloud during its brief stay of existence. It was too high up for any of the citizens to see, but two figures emerged from the inky mass just before it disappeared. One of the figures righted itself in mid-air, floating lazily. The other fell like a stone until a surge of magical energy surrounded it. When the energy faded, the figure flew up to where the other was hovering. 

"What kind of trick is this! You're trying to confuse me, aren't you!" demanded the first figure as he pointed his sword at the other.

The second figure snorted in contempt. "What are you talking about? I'm not the one who uses magic to fight his battles for him!"

"Why you!"

The two launched themselves at each other and began clashing.

* * *

Looking out the observation deck window, X caught an odd movement in the distance. 

"Hey, what's..."

Before he could finish, a beam of white light shot out of one of the miniature figures and started tracing its way towards the other, tearing up everything that got in its way.

"Holy cow!" yelled Alise. "Did Dark Axis teleport their forces right into the city!"

V shook his head. "No, there are only two of them and they're fighting each other. We need to go stop them."

"You may want to wait on that."

The three turned towards the door and saw Captain Nu as he walked in. "The General is trying to make Mr. Hymem see things from our point of view..."

* * *

"Get out there and take care of those two menaces immediately!" Jamitov screamed through the video phone. 

"But sir," Haro replied calmly, "you told me not to draw attention to the Gundam Force. If I send them out now..."

The Secretary of Defense gnashed his teeth. "So, you want to play it that way, do you? ...Fine. I'll take care of the public. Just stop those two maniacs from destroying everything!"

As the screen winked off, General Haro stood and looked at the assembled Gundam Force. "You heard the Secretary, everyone. We have to stop those two unidentified characters. Don't just rush in guns blazing, if they're not from Dark Axis we need to figure out why they're here."

Captain Nu smiled. "Sounds good to me. Everyone, let's go!"

* * *

In the city, the citizens scrambled around in a general chaos as the battle raged around them. One of the fighters landed and, in a burst of magic, produced an enormous cannon, leveled it at his opponent, and began imbuing it with magical energies. 

"This is your end!"

He fired the cannon in the same instant his opponent released a wide beam of magical power from his sword. The two mystical attacks clashed for a split-second before exploding, sending wild tendrils of energy in every direction. One of those errant beams almost struck Zeta as the flight-capable members of the SDG raced to the city.

"What the heck are throwing around out there? It doesn't seem like regular beam weapons," he commented as he returned to formation with the others.

Ensign X shrugged. "Maybe it's magic?"

"You need to stop reading those comic books," said Double-Zeta as he increased his speed towards the fight.

* * *

Cursing as he dodged another stray bolt of energy, Captain Nu came upon the grounded warrior, who was lining up an arrow in his bow again. 

"So how the heck do we stop these guys?" asked Leopard as he rolled along next to the Captain, thanks to his foot-mounted wheels.

"I have a few ideas," Sil replied as she lined up a shot with her VSBRs towards the unidentified figure.

Nu reached over and lowered her weapon. "No, we're bringing these guys in alive. Let's settle for a warning shot first."

The sound of Leopard's gatling firing drew their attention over. When greeted by their questioning glares, he pointed at the figure. "He was about to fire again."

Captain Nu sighed, then raised his beam rifle. "Alright, drop your weapons and surrender."

"Have you no sense of honor?" questioned the figure as he turned to face the Gundams. To their surprise, other than his elaborate armor and mideval weaponry, he looked just like a Gundam. "I'm in the middle of a duel with the leader of the enemy army, and..."

"AND you're in the middle of a city!" interrupted Sil with a tone of annoyance in her voice. "Didn't you notice all the people running away?"

The mystery Gundam blinked in surprise. "This is a city? Are you saying that people actually live in these square mountains?"

The three Gundams looked at each other in mild confusion. Shaking his head, Nu turned back to the other Gundam. "Look, for now, you and your opponent should come with us by the authority of the local defense force."

A brief wave of magical power washed over the Gundam, causing his weapons and cape to disappear. "As you wish."

* * *

General Haro paced back and forth in front of the holding cells on Blanc Base, two of which now had occupants. Even though he had managed to get Jamitov and his cronies to back off, the situation wasn't good any way you looked at it. He turned to the two Gundams. 

"On the positive side, there were no casualties as a result of your actions. However, people were still hurt, and now there is going to be a massive backlash. We'll be lucky if the people don't ask us to disband."

"But sir..."

"No buts!" he interrupted. "While I am inclined to treat guests with respect, you two have shown that you can't be trusted to be within arm's reach of one another. Until you decide to behave more rationally, you will remain here. Is that understood?"

Without waiting for a reply from either of them, the General stormed out of the room.

* * *

Zako...Zako...Zako... 

It's the Zako Zako Hour!

Zako 1: Ladies and gentle-bots, welcome to the Zako Zako Hour! Today's subject is...

Zakos: (together) "Important People of the Dark Axis!"

Zako 3: Wait a second!

Zako 1: What's the problem, zako?

Zako 3: Shouldn't we talk about those new Gundams?

Zako 2: We're saving that for another episode, so we don't spoil any of the surprise!

Zako 3: That makes sense, I guess...

Zako 1: Anyway, on with the show. The first important person in Dark Axis is...

Voice: Hold it right there!

Zako 1: Huh?

(Two shadowy figures come from the wings of the stage; only their glowing green eyes are visible.)

Figure 1: You won't need to worry about your commanders just yet.

Zako 2: Why's that, zako?

Figure 2: Because the two of us will be taking temporary command of Dark Axis' excursionary forces while your leaders recuperate from their last battle with the Gundam Force.

Zako 3: Who are you?

Figure 1: You'll just have to wait and see...

Zako 1: Oh well...I guess there's nothing else left to say, except...

For the future of the Dark Axis, ZAKO SOLDIERS, FIGHT!

(Fade out, leaving nothing but the figures' eyes and their laughter.)


	4. Episode 4: Brothers of Darkness the Me

SD Gundam Force GF  
An SD Gundam Force fanfiction by Preventer Void  
Episode 4: Brothers of Darkness - the Mercenary Duo!

* * *

The General looked over the figures and fumed. After a week, things were still looking pretty grim. Despite the fact that they had had ample time to rest, his subordinates were still recovering from the damage the Gundam Force had inflicted upon them. He clenched his massive fist angrily. Damn those Gundams... 

Then he remembered the messenger who had delivered the bad news. With an almost imperceptible nod, he bid the Doga leave the room. He could have taken his anger out on the little soldier, but that would have made for poor leadership, and it would give him an undue aura of fear. He didn't want his own people to be afraid of him, just his enemies.

There was a sudden knock at the door. This was a complete surprise; he hadn't expected any more reports yet. "Who is it?"

"It's me," came Lady Qubeley's voice from through the thick stone door. "There is a matter to which I believe you need attend."

"Enter."

The doors swung open and into the room strode Qubeley. Except for some scuffs still on her armor, she looked almost at fighting strength. After briefly bowing, she got right to the point. "General, our soldiers apprehended a pair of unidentified Gundams entering the homeland. They're in the dungeon at the moment. I figured you would want to interrogate them, but bringing them up here seemed foolish."

"A cogent decision," the General replied. "Alright then, activate the screen."

The main screen lit up, displaying the image of the two Gundams in the holding cell. One was primarily colored magenta with gold and black details, while the other was black with red and gray details. The magenta one, apparently the leader of the two, stood and bowed. "You are the General?"

"I am. And what are you two doing in our land? You should be warned, I have a low opinion of Gundams."

The black one stood and bowed as well before replying. "We mean you no ill will, sir. Our intention was to offer you our services."

That caught the General by surprise. "Services?"

"My brother and I are soldiers of fortune, traveling the dimensions and plying our trade," said the magenta Gundam. "We observed your last battle and thought that you might be needing some assistance, at least until your men recover."

"And how do you intend to prove your worth?" asked Qubeley as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"With your permission, we will lead an attack on Neotopia. If we cannot do anything to impress you there, then we will leave you be."

The General was silent as he thought this over. After a minute of thought, he nodded. "Alright. We have only to gain from this venture. Will you require soldiers?"

"No, thank you," said the older brother as he shook his head, "we have our own force. We'll be off presently."

"One more thing," the General said before the two Gundams left. "Your names?"

The magenta Gundam waved to his brother with one hand. "My sibling is Ashtaron the Dark Soldier, and I am Virsago the Ghost Mercenary."

* * *

Captain Nu entered the rec room on Blanc Base, shaking his head. Double-Zeta, who was busy playing foosball with Javelin, nodded to his CO. "Did you learn anything from the other one, sir?" 

"Nothing Alise didn't get learn from the other one," Nu said as he shook his head. "He gave us the same story: he comes from a peaceful country that was attacked by the 'horrible, war-mongering villains' from the other country and they had to go to war to protect their civilians. The only big difference is that this guy is the leader of the knights in his country, while his opponent is just another member of the army."

Sil leaned against the window. "So, what are we going to do with these two?"

"The only thing we CAN do is to return them to their home dimension as soon as we perfect dimensional travel," the Captain replied.

"You know, it seems odd..." said Ensign V as he looked out the window at the flowing white clouds.

"What do you mean?" asked Javelin as everyone turned to look at V.

"If both these nations are as peaceful as they say, why would either of them attack one another? It seems a lot more likely that a third party attempted to start a war between the two nations."

Alise sighed. "It seems obvious, but those two refuse to see it."

"Don't forget about national pride," ReGZ added as he got a soda from the mini-fridge. "One of the hardest things to do for someone with that much pride is admitting that you or your superiors were ever wrong."

Before anyone could add anything else, Ensign X came into the room, shaking his head. "I don't believe it...the bigwigs in the government are limiting the number of active members we can have at a single time. They don't trust us after that last incident."

Captain Nu put his head in his hands and sighed deeply. "Great, what else could go wrong today?"

* * *

The dimensional gateway opened out into the sky above Neotopia, allowing a boxy crimson ship to glide through the air and towards the hand-shaped cloud that disguised the bulk of Blanc Base. Virsago stood on the deck, letting the wind whip past his face. He slowly unfolded his arms as his brother stomped out next to him, followed by their Footsoldier Octaves. 

"So, what's the plan? Are we going to destroy their base?" asked Ashtaron.

The magenta Gundam shook his head.

"But brother...!"

"All we have to do is prove ourselves to the General," Virsago said finally. "If we destroy that base, we deny him the pleasure of doing it himself. All we really need to do is destroy at least one of their members. We save the more spectacular for later."

Ashtaron grunted with annoyance. "Fine."

"Besides, the General will be happy enough that we're basically handing him the SDG's base on a silver platter. That in and of itself will be more than enough."

"Sometimes, I wonder about you, brother..."

Virsago wasn't listening. As he saw the far walls of the SDG base appear through the clouds, his first thought was "It's been too long..."

* * *

The Gundams ran through the halls as the alarms screamed at them. "Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong..." Captain Nu muttered under his breath. 

As he joined the group heading for the bridge, Gunstriker looked over at the Captain. "I thought the Secretary said we were to only have so many active members at a time."

X grunted at that. "Well, if he's fine with the base falling to Earth and crushing the city, then we'll listen. But if the old man wants us to do our job..."

"That kind of talk can be pretty dangerous, you know," commented V as he glanced over at his fellow ensign.

"Honestly, I agree," said Nu. "There are two ways of doing things in today's world: the right way, and the bureaucratic way. If Mr. Hymem wants us to do things the bureaucratic way, then he can be the one to take the blame when Blanc Base comes crashing down to the surface. As for me, I'm going out there to stop them myself, and anyone who wants to stay behind is welcome to do so."

Nobody took him up on his offer.

* * *

The anti-aircraft turrets ringing Blanc Base began hammering away as the Octaves flew towards the hand-shaped base, their beam rifles and bazookas blazing. Swirling and darting around to confuse the gunners, the red warriors took deliberate aim and started taking the turrets out at their leisure. When the immediate threat was neutralized, the Octaves began landing on the deck one by one. After they were all assembled, the two brothers followed. 

"This is what was giving the Dark Axis trouble?" Ashtaron snorted. "I wonder if they're even worth our time."

"Don't be so unfair," Virsago replied. "I'm sure if they knew where Blanc Base was, they would have done this to begin with."

The black Gundam looked at his brother. "So how do you know where it is, not to mention its name?"

Virsago pointed towards the main base. Ashtaron looked in time to see the Gundam Force come running out, weapons at the ready. "That will have to wait."

Captain Nu leveled his beam rifle at the crimson Gundam and glared through its sights. "Who are you, and what are you doing here?"

"Just a little business for the Dark Axis, my dear boy."

"Dark Axis!" cried X in surprise.

"Correct, and their general asked me to deliver a message. He says 'Fire'."

Sil blinked in surprise. "Fire? What does..."

And then, the Garbera started firing its beam cannons at Blanc Base.

* * *

The Gundams dodged just in time for the beams to go searing by them, tearing into the base. Without even waiting for the order, most of the Gundam Force fired their beam rifles at the red ship, aiming for the gun turrets. Within seconds, the beam cannons were destroyed, but they found that the Octaves had worked their way into their midst, making ranged combat an impossibility. 

Ensign V leapt back as one Octave slashed at him with its beam saber, cutting through the metal. With a wordless grunt of frustration, he threw away the damaged weapon and drew his own beam saber and began clashing with the red enemy. As each tried to force the other's saber backwards, the Octave began firing his chest machinecannons, catching V off-guard and causing him to stumble. The Octave drew back his beam saber...

And a black sphere rocketed out of nowhere and caught it in the side of the head, sending it sprawling. Even before V could stand up, X was at his side. "You okay?"

V looked down at his scarred chest. "It's nothing major. What was...?"

"Oh, this?" said X with a tone of pleasure in his voice as he held up what looked like his beam sword's handle, except that the blade was replaced with a spike-covered head. "G-Hammer. I decided to try it out, and I..."

"Behind!"

Without breaking stride, X swung the hammer like a mace, striking another Octave in the head. "...I'd say it's a success. Now, if you'll excuse me..." Not waiting for anything else, the ensign charged back into the fray, spinning the hammer over his head before pitching it at another Octave. V picked up his beam saber and followed his friend into the morass of battle.

Captain Nu used his shield to knock down the last Octave that stood between him and the two enemy Gundams. Virsago drew his own beam saber and pointed it at the captain. "Brother, go help the grunts."

"But!" Ashtaron started to protest.

"You heard me," interrupted his brother. "I want to fight this young one by myself."

With a resigned sigh, Ashtaron charged past Nu and went to fight his own enemies. Nu raised his beam saber and glared the crimson Gundam down. "Who are you?"

Virsago chuckled. "You'll just have to force it out of me...Alex."

Nu's eyes went wide with shock. "That's...how do you know that! Who the hell are you!"

"Wait and see, my dear boy, wait and see..."

* * *

Deep within the bowels of Blanc Base, the two Knight Gundams sat in their cells. After the initial impact, nothing much had happened except for some people running by the door. 

"So what do you think is going on out there?" Strike asked as he glanced at the activity outside.

"I don't know," Wing replied, "and I'd rather not talk to an enemy."

With an angry grunt, Strike heaved himself up off the palate and went to the door. "How many times do we have to tell you hotheads in Cinquede? We're just defending ourselves against your attacks!"

Wing laughed. "That's a good one. You Orbians are the ones who started this by attacking that village!"

"No, YOU attacked OUR villages!"

Despite the fact that they couldn't look at each other, the tension between the two Knight Gundams was rising rapidly. But just as suddenly, realization struck both of them. Wing was the first to talk. "Wait, do you know what the attackers looked like?"

"From what I hear, they're light green with large fins on their helmets and they wield broadswords and hand crossbows."

"That's what I heard, too," Wing said as he leaned against the wall. "But my country doesn't have any soldiers like that, and I bet yours doesn't either."

Strike thought this over, then slapped his forehead with his palm. "I can't believe it! Why didn't anyone see this sooner?"

"Because in a war, people tend to get stirred up thinking about national pride and nobody likes admitting that they were wrong."

As they ruminated on this, the Gun Zetas ran by the door. Taking the initiative, Strike called out to them. "Hey, what's going on out there?"

Gun Zeta Two stopped and looked at the two captives. "Some ship just appeared and started attacking us. They're pretty skilled, and they've managed to pin the others down. We're going to help." With that, he ran off.

After a minute, Wing looked over towards the other cell. "So, do you feel like making up for what we've done?"

"How do we do that?" asked Strike. "We're locked in here, and..."

The sound of metal on metal interrupted him. Looking up, he saw Wing standing outside his cell, sword and shield in hand.

"You mean you could have summoned those whenever you wanted to? Why didn't you escape earlier?"

Wing shook his head. "The same reason you didn't - it's rude."

As Strike stood, a blue cape appeared on his back as a smallshield, boomerang and greatsword materialized in his hands. With one swing of the blade, the lock on his cell shattered. After exchanging a quick nod, the two Knight Gundams ran off towards the deck.

* * *

With a cruel laugh, Ashtaron fired his claw beam cannons at the deck of Blanc Base, causing burning shards of shrapnel to burst outwards towards the Gundams fighting him. Almost too late, Sil activated her beam shield and blocked herself and Leopard from the hail of jagged metal. 

"How are we supposed to fight this guy when he keeps us pinned down like this!" cursed Mudrock as the metal shards punched into his shield.

"We'll just have to figure something out," replied Sil. She turned to Leopard. "Can you lob some of your homing missiles over at him, maybe make him put his head down long enough to let us counterattack?"

Leopard nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

"Don't worry, this one is mine!"

Much to the surprise of the Gundams, a gray-blue streak flashed overhead and flew straight for Ashtaron. Swearing, he drew out his beam saber just in time to intercept a glowing blue blade that had been aimed at his chest.

"Striker!"

Gunstriker smiled. "I'll take care of this punk, you deal with their little red assistants."

The sheer weight of his opponent forced Ashtaron to land, his feet scrapping across the scarred deck and pushing him almost to the edge. "You think that just because you're bigger, you can beat me?"

"I don't think," replied Striker, "I KNOW."

The black Gundam laughed viciously. "Well, you certainly are proud, but you know what they say..." Interrupting himself, he lashed out with his claws, one knocking the beam sword from Striker's hands, the other smashing him in the face and disorienting him. Then, each claw grabbed one of the Gundam's arms. Still laughing, Ashtaron spun around and threw Gunstriker off of Blanc Base.

"...And THERE'S the fall."

* * *

Virsago jumped backwards, barely avoiding Nu's beam saber, and lashed out with one of his strike claws. Cursing, Captain raised his shield, only to have the claws punch through it before they clenched down and ripped it off of the mount on his arm. Throwing the shield aside, Virsago looked around at the battle. He caught his brother's eye, and Ashtaron nodded. Looking over at the base, he saw the two Knight Gundams rushing out to aid them. 

"It appears that we've overstayed our welcome. Well, young Alex, until next time..."

With a wordless yell, Captain Nu pulled out his beam rifle and started firing it at Virsago. The crimson Gundam dodged as he jumped off the deck and began flying back towards their ship, followed by Ashtaron and the Octaves. As they flew away, the ship began firing a salvo of missiles towards Blanc Base. Dashing up next to Captain, Alise leveled her beam smartgun towards the center mass of missiles and fired. The wide blue beam cause most of the projectiles to explode in huge bursts of pyrotechnics. When the smoke finally cleared, the enemy ship was nowhere to be found.

"High-explosive missiles?" asked X with wonder in his voice.

Captain Nu looked around, first at the damage to the base, then at the two recently escaped Knight Gundams, then at all the damage the Gundam Force had incurred. "We're really going to need to re-assess our battle strategy after this...but first, I need some sleep."

Without saying anything else to the others, he stomped off into the base.

* * *

"How was our performance, General?" 

The leader of Dark Axis looked over the data taken during the battle once more. Despite the fact that they were weaker than the Soldier Dogas, the mercenary Octaves were obviously better trained and more experienced; after all, expecting a single Doga to go toe-to-toe with a member of the Gundam Force was practically murder. Additionally, they had managed to do severe damage to the SDG base, and had even killed one of the Gundams. Closing the window, the General nodded. "Quite excellent. Although it pains me to say so, you performed better than any of my subordinates have up to this point."

Off to the side, Zssa growled but was restrained by Dreissen. Zaku kicked at the ground and Jarja tapped her fingers against the hilt of her beam sword. Standing behind them all, Qubeley folded her arms over her chest and shook her head slowly.

Virsago smiled. "Then with your kind permission, we would like to stay on and help you defeat the Gundam Force. In addition to leading attacks, we could use the benefit of our experience to help train your own soldiers, and we would be glad to help you with your worthy cause."

The General relaxed in his seat. "Excellent."

* * *

Zako...Zako...Zako... 

It's the Zako Zako Hour!

Zako 1: Ladies and gentle-bots, welcome to the Zako Zako Hour! Today's subject is...

Zakos: (together) "Important People of the Dark Axis!"

Zako 2: Zako! Last time, these new mercernary Gundams interrupted us when we were talking about the great and powerful leaders of the Dark Axis!

Zako 3: That's right, but this time nothing will keep us from telling the viewers about them!

(long pause)

Zako 2: (to Zako 1) Well?

Zako 1: (surprised) Oh, sorry! I was just expecting an interruption, anyway, first we'll talk about...

(The screen lights up with images of Lady Qubeley in battle.)

Zako 1: Lady Qubeley, one of the two military leaders of Dark Axis! In battle she's fierce and ruthless, using her remote Funnel weapons to attack the enemy from all sides! She's especially devoted to the General and reveres him as a leader and a mentor.

Zako 3: And then there's...

(The screen changes to show Captain Bawoo.)

Zako 3: This is Captain Bawoo, the other military leader of Dark Axis! He's as tough as Lady Qubeley, but he's more noteworthy for his post-battle celebrations, which are sprawling and wild! He also loves to talk about his military exploits to anyone who'll listen.

Zako 1: That's true, but he looks after the little guys like us all the same!

Zako 2: And last, but most certainly not least...

(The screen shows several silhouetted shots of the General.)

Zako 2: This is the General himself! He keeps himself shrouded in mystery, and only his top aides know what he really looks like!

Zako 1: It's rumored that he has a special grudge against the organics, which is part of the reason we've launched this war in the first place!

Zako 3: But what's the main reason, then?

Voice: A-HEM...

(Qubeley and Bawoo walk onstage.)

Zakos: (sweatdropping) Um...Zako?

Qubeley: We'll save that little revelation for another day, shall we?

Bawoo: Indeed, what's the fun in showing all your cards at the start of the game?

Zako 1: (still sweatdropping) Well, I guess that's all for today...

For the future of the Dark Axis, ZAKO SOLDIERS, FIGHT!


	5. Episode 5: TurnA, Visitor in the Moonli

SD Gundam Force GF  
An SD Gundam Force fanfiction by Preventer Void  
Episode 5: Turn-A, Visitor in the Moonlight!

* * *

The weather over Neotopia City that night was the worst it had been in decades. Deathly black clouds swallowed up the moon, the only natural light coming from the brilliant blue flashes of lightning that arced across the sky all too often. However, despite having all the trappings of a thunderstorm, not a single drop of rain came from the ebony sky. The meteorologists looked at their figures, scratched their heads, then went back to check their information for the tenth, the fifteenth, the fiftieth time. They had no way of realizing that weather had nothing to do with this night. 

Because of the erratic lightning, everyone was staying inside. Had anyone chosen to ignore the mayor's advice and actually venture outside that night, they might have seen the cause of the bizarre weather.

Over five miles out of the city's limits, a bolt of lightning struck the ground. Less than a minute later, another struck in the exact same spot. Then another. And another. Within several seconds, an unearthly mass of electricity streaked from the sky and massed itself upon that same spot, coruscating with raw power as they stood, stolid as the trees. Slowly, the lightning seemed to detach itself from the clouds and converge on the ground, coalescing into a single point before exploding outwards with a shockwave that burned the grass and knocked the trees askew.

In the middle of where the shockwave had just occurred, a single figure stood. He looked up into the sky as the black clouds spontaneously parted and vanished. The full moon shone down on his face, as if an omen. He stopped to ponder this, then realized something more important.

"Wh...where am I?" he asked no one in particular.

* * *

"Alex, look out!" 

With a sudden start, Lieutenant Alex used his thrusters to dodge to the side as a bazooka shell streaked past him. Following it back to its point of origin, he leveled his beam rifle and fired. The pink beam shot raced towards the Dom who had fired at him originally, destroying his bazooka and knocking him flat on his face. Without even stopping to regard his foe, Alex dashed along the ground, using his beam rifle and arm Gatling to rapidly deal with the Zakos on either side of him. "How's that?" he asked as he turned to his commanding officer.

Captain F91 nodded. "Great, kid...now don't get cocky!" The captain's back-mounted VSBRs swung into place by his sides and began peppering the Zakos with thin, rapid beam shots that knocked them down with ease. A Gouf jumped up at him, heat sword drawn, but he blocked with his beam shield before kicking the blue enemy in the face.

The enemy commander chose that moment to attack, leaping at the Captain from behind. Alex started to cry out, but a claw lashed out from nowhere and struck the commander in the face, sending him sprawling. F91 turned to look at his savior.

"You know, Captain...," said the tall, mostly white Gundam with a chuckle, "it's not good for your image for you to tease the rookie then commit the exact same mistake."

F91 shrugged in a nonchalant way. "Say what you will, Belphagor, but we're ALL rookies here."

"Some more than others," Belphagor said as he regarded the enemy he had just floored.

Destroid Kaempfer rose to his feet slowly, wiping oil from his face. "Any time you feel like helping..."

"Oh, you mean me?" asked Gyan Commander as he leaned casually against a tree. "Well, you were so all-fired sure you could do this by yourself...are you sure it's not an insult to your pride to let a...what was it you called me?...a 'dinosaur' help you?"

The heavily-armed soldier turned on his sword-bearing counterpart. "Why you..."

"Stop right there!"

The two soldiers turned to face their ship, the Zanshibal, as the feminine voice of their commander came over the loudspeakers. "Get back to the ship. This mission is a failure."

Muttering angry curses under his breath, Kaempfer gathered the remainder of his forces and, with Gyan shaking his head all the way, returned to the ship.

Alex turned to his two superiors. "Back to headquarters, then?"

"You guys were great!"

Before anyone could say anything, Alex found himself the victim of an enthusiastic glomp from behind. Feeling his cheeks heat up, he struggled to get out of the embrace. "Tiffa, were you there the whole time?"

The brunette girl laughed as she let Alex go. "I didn't want to get in the way, so I stayed out of sight. You three were incredible, like always!"

Captain F91 waved his hand, as if to shoo the praise. "It's just our job. If we didn't do it right..."

Commander Belphagor playfully punched the Captain's shoulder. "Learn to take a compliment, will ya...sir?"

Everyone laughed merrily, as if they would always be like this forever...

* * *

Captain Nu awoke from the dream then. With a groan, he rose from his bed and walked over to the wide window that overlooked Neotopia City. The lightning storm was still happening, but by some miracle, none of the errant bolts had struck Blanc Base. 

Turning away from the light show, he clicked on the lamp on his nightstand. There, glinting in the light, was a framed picture of himself as Alex, along with the Captain, the Commander, and Tiffa. That had been over ten years ago. Tiffa had graduated from college and moved to another city to become a marine biologist. In a way, Nu envied her; she could just pack up and move on, trying to forget the past. He had to stay here, constantly being reminded of what happened. He had been there when the dimensional travel tests went wrong. That feeling of powerlessness as the portal just shut down, casting Captain F91 into the mysterious Minov Sea, was something he never wanted to experience again. A month later, Commander Belphagor snuck down and entered the portal himself, trying to find the Captain; he vanished as well. The only saving grace was that the mysterious enemy who had attacked them had been repulsed; with only one Gundam, Neotopia would have been next to defenseless.

Shortly after that, the SDG had been shut down. Its funding all but cut, they had to settle for very slowly advancing their technology. Unfortunately, the Secretary of Defense had refused to let them pursue dimensional travel. That grated on Nu more than anything else. It felt like signing the Captain and Commander's death warrants. Only the knowledge that things would be safe kept him whole. When things looked their darkest, Alex had offered to enter suspended animation so that the SDG wouldn't have to worry about his repair costs. Several years later, he was surprised to be re-activated, now upgraded to his current form and promoted, with the added responsibility of teaching a new generation of Gundams how to fight when he himself was still a rookie in so many ways.

Lying back down on the bed, Nu switched off the light and stared at the ceiling. He wondered if he would be able to get any sleep tonight either...

* * *

"...Are you listening?" 

X looked up suddenly. "Huhwha?"

Sil rolled her eyes. "Zoning out again? Lemee guess, you were admiring the latest Hitomi Shimatani album, or were you admiring the artist herself?"

"Hey, I can't help it if all the singers I like are pretty girls!"

"No," countered V, "but that doesn't exempt you from being the butt of our jokes."

X fumed. "ANYWAY! What was it you were saying?"

"I was just asking if you heard those two old-style Gundams' story," Sil said as she shifted the bag of rice balls from one hand to the other."

When X shook his head, V explained. "Apparently, they come from a dimension similar to ours, except that they're in the middle of a feudal era. Each of them comes from a different kingdom, and they just recently entered a war. Each nation thought that the other attacked the villages along their common border."

"I heard that much," X said, "but why the change of heart?"

Sil picked a rice ball from her bag and took a bite. "While they were in the holding cells, they had time to think things through, and they realized that the description of the knights who attacked the villages didn't match either of their own soldiers, so someone instigated a war."

X looked up at the cloudless sky. "So, are we going to try and finally develop dimensional travel and help them out? Will the Secretary even LET us develop dimensional travel? And if we leave, what keeps those Dark Axis goons from attacking while we're gone?"

V set a hand on his fellow soldier's shoulder. "Those questions are for people beyond us mere ensigns, my friend. Just leave it to the higher-ups."

As the three friends walked back towards their ship, they never noticed the mysterious figure cross the street behind them, looking totally lost.

* * *

"So tell me again why we're doing this?" 

The Zakos looked over at one of his countless doppelgangers. "Do you want the honest answer, or the one that won't get us shot at?"

Several Zakos tromped towards an old Musai, machineguns and heat hawks in hand. Standing off to the side was Blaster Zssa, pacing back and forth and muttering about her image and the General. Since they were a decent distance away, and Zssa seemed absorbed in her own ranting, the first Zako shrugged. "I feel lucky."

"Whatever," said the second. "Miss Trigger-Happy thinks that the General doesn't trust her, so she apparently decided that the best way to earn his trust is to take outdated soldiers and an old battleship (without permission, I add, and attack Neotopia."

A third shook his head. "That just has 'brilliant plan' written all over it, wouldn't you say?"

"Do you want to be the one to tell her that?" asked the second.

There was a pause, followed by all three Zakos sighing.

"Maybe the General will be nice enough to repair us after we get our butts kicked..." added the first hopefully as he walked up the gangplank into the Musai.

* * *

General Haro entered the mechanical room, hands behind his back, wondering just what Kao Lin had asked him to see. He had gotten the message while in the middle of debriefing Wing and Strike, and the eccentric scientist had insisted that it was important, but he was too excited to say what it was over the comm line. And so, here he was. 

"Ah, General! I'm glad to see you here!"

Haro turned around, surprised by the odd man. "You wanted to show me something?"

"Yes indeed, and I guarantee you'll be pleased! Right this way!" Not waiting, the engineer swept past the general, his Chinese-style clothing flapping behind him. He lead Haro to a barrier, the kind used to observe the testing of new weapons. Through the vision slit, Haro could see a metal ring, about five feet in diameter. After looking it over, he turned to Kao Lin.

"Just a second, I have to check the connections!" After fiddling around underneath a console for several seconds, the scientist stood up, waved his hands for dramatic effect, then pressed a red button. The ring began glowing with golden energy, which shot to the center in lightning-like bolts. Slowly, the lightning seemed to pull space open, revealing a tunnel made of swirling purple energy. Beneath his domed mask, the general's eyes widened.

"This is..."

"Quite right!" Kao Lin said excitedly. "General, I have managed to construct a dimensional gateway that would allow us to travel to any other dimension we can locate. The process is a little unclear, but if you let me get a little time to study our knightly friends, I'm pretty sure I can isolate the energy from Lacroa and have the gateway make a connection. Of course, this gate is much too small, but we can build one big enough to hold the Pegasus in a matter of days."

Haro nodded as the scientist shut the gate down. "Excellent. I'll..."

Before the general could finish, the alarms started blaring. He hurried over to the communications system built into the wall near the door and opened a line to the bridge. "Julie, status report."

The operator shook her head slowly, as if in confusion. "Well sir, something from the Dark Axis dimension seems to be coming at us, but it's not their usual make of ship...it appears to be the old Musai."

That left the general speechless. "The ship from a decade ago? Well, who knows what they're planning...scramble the Gundam Force!"

* * *

The lost figure looked up at the sky; the sun was slowly sinking beyond the horizon, and he had been virtually everywhere in the city, but it was no use. He was just as lost and lonely as he had been when he showed up that night. Now it was starting to get dark again. He wondered if he would be able to get to some form of shelter before it got cold or worse, it started raining again. 

He sighed. "Man, why can't I remember?" he said to nobody in particular. He had spent the whole day wandering the length and breadth of the city, wracking his brain to find some memory that might help him figure out who he was or at the very least, WHERE he was. Unfortunately, his luck wasn't any better now than it had been almost twelve hours ago.

Just as he was beginning to feel even more lost than before, he looked up to the sky again, and noticed something that caught his attention. There was a cloud shaped like a hand, its fingers fanned out. Almost automatically, he held out his arm and fanned his fingers, making them look just like the cloud. There was something about it...

Then he saw it. Following the path "pointed to" by both the cloud's index finger and his own, he saw a black speck against the blue sky. He could feel as if his range of vision were growing stronger, allowing him to get an almost telescopic view of the object. Now, he could see that it was made of metal, painted white and blue, and had several wing-like extensions all over its body.

"A ship..." Operating entirely on instinct, the mysterious figure began running as fast as he could, following the vessel to wherever it was headed...

* * *

With a loud crunch, Captain Nu landed on the ground nearby the Pegasus, followed by the ground-bound members of the SDG. Taking out his beam rifle, he pointed it at the enemies and started to order their surrender...but was cut off by what he saw. 

Javelin scratched his head. "Sir? Aren't those Zako Soldiers?"

"There's no way," Leopard replied. "Those guys were outdated even back in the day!"

Nu looked over the ranks of the Dark Axis forces and slowly shook his head. "Actually, Javelin's right. These ARE Zakos. What the heck is going on?"

At that moment, Zssa landed nearby and leveled her gunspear at the Gundams. "Hah! It doesn't matter what weapons we use, you punks are going down this time! Right, guys!"

As the Zakos sweatdropped, one responded in a rather wooden voice. "Yes, ma'am. We'll get those Gundams for sure." When his unwanted commander's back was turned, however, he held up a hastily-written sign, reading "PLEASE HELP US".

"That's right," said another Zako in an equally forced tone. "Your state-of-the-art armor is no match for our outdated machineguns and bazookas." Like his predecessor, he held up a sign, this one reading "WE DON'T WANT TO FIGHT".

A third Zako chimed in, just as unenthusiastic as his brothers and sisters. "You should surrender now, before we really get mad." His sign read "PLEASE DON'T KILL US".

"That's right!" cried Zssa, hefting her gunspear into the air and firing off several rounds. She whirled around to look at her "forces", who quickly hid their signs. "We'll get 'em this time for sure!"

Silhouette blinked in surprise as she leaned over to the Captain. "Um, sir?"

Nu sighed and rubbed his forehead before activating the secret comlink in his helmet. "Everyone, go easy on the little guys. They really don't deserve it..."

* * *

Coming to a stop, the mystery figure took a second to catch his breath; all that running was hard work. After a couple of minutes, he heard clashing weapons and pained yells. He looked up and saw the site of a battle, but something immediately caught his attention. 

"Is that...a Gundam?" he wondered out loud. "It is...and there's another...wow, there's a lot of them...maybe THEY can help me figure out who I am."

Straightening up, the figure ran towards the battlefield, waving and shouting. "HEY! CAN ONE OF YOU HELP ME?"

* * *

Zeta grunted as he used his shield to stop a half-hearted heat hawk attack, executed by a less-than-enthusiastic Zako Soldier. The green robot shook his head slightly and whispered, "Sorry about this" under his breath. 

"No need, I feel sorry for you guys," Zeta replied as he pushed the Zako back with a shield bash, causing the little guy to land on his back. Zeta noticed that he was staying down, feigning unconsciousness. Inwardly, the Gundam mused that the Zakos were on the whole smarter than their commander.

Said commander looked at her troops getting their butts kicked and growled. "What's wrong with you guys! Where's your spirit!"

One of the Zakos crawled up to Zssa and made a big show of acting injured. "Ma'am...we haven't fought in...over ten years..."

"That's no excuse!" yelled Zssa as she waved her gunspear frantically. "We should still be able to..."

"HEY!"

At that moment, the battlefield stopped. Everyone's gaze was directed to the source of the voice, a very Gundam-esque figure who was running towards them, waving. "CAN ONE OF YOU HELP ME?"

Captain Nu almost rubbed his eyes in disbelief. "Who is that guy and what the hell's he thinking?"

"Is that guy a Gundam?" asked V as he shielded his eyes against the sinking sun.

Zssa's immediate response was to open up her missile bays. "It doesn't matter what he is now, 'cause in a couple of seconds, he'll be scrap!"

Everything seemed to go into slow motion as the missiles streaked towards the newcomer. X raised a hand as he yelled out, but it was too late...

* * *

The smoke began drifting away slowly, stirred by a weak breeze. The Gundams looked on in shock; the Zakos tried to hide their embarrassment. For her part, Zssa was laughing maniacally. 

But as the black wisps dissipated, something was there. The first thing they saw was a white oval shape, lined with red trim. With the last of the smoke gone, the mysterious figure stood from behind the shield, completely unscathed. There was a determined look in his eyes, and the symbol on his forehead was glowing a bright green.

One of the Zakos slowly went over to his commander and nudged her. "Um, ma'am?"

Zssa kicked the Zako away before growling, "Not now! I'm enjoying the way that punk blew up!"

"But...he didn't."

"WHAT!"

Now totally infuriated, Zssa jumped to her feet and looked at the figure. "Kid, you just made the list!" She opened up with the gunspear's beam Gatling as she fired off all of her missiles and beam cannons in unison.

The figure looked at the weapons coming impassively. In his hand, the shield began to glow in bright rainbow colors before melting and deforming into the shape of a hammer with an exceptionally long chain. Hefting the handle, the figure started spinning the hammer over his head, picking up momentum rapidly, before lowering it so that the chain formed a barrier, blocking all of the wildly-fired attacks. Once more, a cloud of black smoke formed where the mystery Gundam had once been.

"BOO-YAH!" cried Zssa as she did an impromptu victory dance. "How'd ya like me now, ya..."

Her cheering slowly drained away as the Gundam came running out of the cloud, dragging the hammer on the ground behind him. As he neared the warriors, he spun it again, this time whipping the spiked head of the weapon at the Dark Axis commander.

"What in the..."

The hammer landed square in her stomach, propelling her across the grassy field at high speeds. The Zakos looked at the new enemy, sweated profusely, then ran to pick up their fallen leader and retreat.

Slowly and unsurely, Captain Nu went over to the new Gundam. "Can...can I help you?"

The hammer glowed briefly, then faded into nothing. With a relaxed sigh, he turned to the Captain. "Actually, yes...can you tell me where I am?"

* * *

In the medical bay, Kao Lin examined the newcomer with a mix of confusion and interest. The Gundam Force itself was there, as well as Wing and Strike, who had been called in on the off chance that the new Gundam was Lacroan. That theory hadn't panned out, however, and now the SDG's top mechanic was giving his expert opinion. They looked on from a one-way mirror as things unfolded. 

After a five-minute examination, the robed man turned to General Haro. "Well, sir, I'm not going to lie to you. I've never seen anything like our young friend here. As near as I can tell, his armor uses an advanced nano-skin system that allows him to repair damage instantly, as well as letting him produce weapons out of thin air, as we saw earlier."

The general thought about this, then looked at the newcomer. "And you don't remember a thing?"

"No, sir," he said. "All I remember is waking up last night in the middle of a field. I don't even know my own name."

"Hmm...I wonder if it's at all related to the disturbance that brought our Lacroan friends here," the general mused out loud.

Kao Lin, however, was busy with other things. He leaned in and took a good look at the Gundam's forehead then laughed to himself. "Well sir, I believe we have a name for our friend here."

That was enough to catch Haro's attention, as well as the Gundam Force's and the Gundam himself. "What is it?" he asked.

The eccentric scientist made his way to a well-worn chalk board and, picking up a sliver of chalk, proceeded to draw...

"...An upside-down A?"

"Not quite," he replied with a laugh, "but I can understand your confusion. This is an advanced mathematical symbol called the universal quantifier. Simply put, it's meant to encompass all items in a set."

The Gundam rubbed his head, as if to stave off a migraine. "So I'm Universal Quantifier Gundam? Oi, that's pretty bad."

Once more, Kao Lin laughed. "Don't worry, my boy, this symbol has a much easier-to-pronounce name. It's also called Turn-A."

* * *

Jamitov looked at the information he had been given and frowned. That wasn't exactly an unusual occurrence; whenever he was dealing with matters related to the SDG, he often found things to be unhappy about. 

His assistant Bosque was more open with his displeasure. "So that disobedient brat Haro went and constructed a dimensional gateway without our permission! Why that..."

Whatever could be said about Jamitov's displeasure with the Gundam Force, it could also be said that he did things professionally. "Let's not go passing sentence without evidence, Bosque." He turned to his chief scientist. "You're sure there's no other possibility?"

Doctor Baund nodded his jackal-like head. "Positive. The only other possibility is that a localized dimensional rift appeared right in the middle of Blanc Base, but I don't think the General would keep quiet if that happened."

"Besides," added a blue-gray figure standing near the door, "I've seen the old man working on the gateway for some time. Based on the parts, I'd say that the one they have is only big enough to send a single person or Gundam."

"Indeed, but if they have the ability to build a small one, they can build a larger one," Doc supplied.

Jamitov folded his hands and thought for some time before speaking. "Let us wait before we act. This turn of events could prove useful. Doctor, see to it that all of our members are prepared, should we have to use our gate. As for you," he said to the larger figure, "step up the training. I want Project Titan to be up and running as soon as possible."

"Yes sir!"

* * *

Zako...Zako... 

Zako...Zako...

Zako...Zako...

Zako 1: What the heck is going on!

(The lights rise on the stage.)

Zako 2: Yeah, why aren't you saying your...

(They look and see that Zako 3 is nowhere to be found.)

Both: AAAAGH!

Zako 2: He's not here! Where is he!

Zako 1: (into his microphone) Attention all Zakos! We have an all-points bulletin. One of the hosts of the Zako Zako Hour has gone missing, and we need your help finding him!

(The audience begins searching.)

Zako 2: We can't do the show without him...so what now?

Zako 1: I guess all we can do is...

For the future of the Dark Axis, ZAKO SOLDIERS, FIGHT!

(Fade to black.)

Zako 2: Where IS he!


End file.
